YAY MICROSOFT WORD WORKS AGAIN! I dunno why it just suddenly started working, but that doesn't matter… I'm happy as hell!
AND THEN IT STOPPED WORKING AGAIN. Just FML and get it over with already. OTL

Disclaimer: I just write the stories, people. I don't own ANYTHING but the plot, damnit! And just because it's included in the story doesn't mean it happened in the game!

Ammy: Okay, Romano, I think they get it now…
Kiku: Romano? I thought his name was Lovino…
Romano: Great, now he's gonna figure it out early. Thanks, Ammy.
Ammy: Just doin' my job, Lovi. Just doin' my job… =3

oOoOoOoOo –Kiku's POV– oOoOoOoOo

Lovino-kun had been staying with us for about a week by then. Not much had changed… he still swore at least once in each sentence (on average), he was still angry at everyone and everything, he was still lost and confused in the city, the idea of cops shooting at him was still a terrifying and foreign idea to him…

He still triggered my missing memories, sent my mind searching for things that were not there.

But some things had changed, all the same. He understood Runner lingo better, I could take him on missions without him getting too lost, he was slowly gaining his own Runner Vision… Lovino-kun was getting better at figuring out the paths I overlooked initially as time went on.

I still did not understand why Mercury-san insisted that I be the person in charge of his training, the only person allowed to train him. Usually, when a new runner was added to the team, the entire team worked together to show him or her the ropes, not just one specific runner. However, who was I to argue with his decisions?

That was why I was outside, on the training grounds, running Lovino-kun through the exercises to remind him of various tactics and teach him to disarm his opponents.

"Hey, Kiku?" Lovino-kun called, panting. "Can we take a break?"

I nodded slowly, waving Lovino-kun over to a nearby ledge. The two of us sit side by side, staring out at the city skyline.

"You seem… somewhat stressed. What is wrong, Lovino-kun?" I asked, watching him out of the corner of my eye.

He bites his lip, the one stray curl in his hair seeming to twitch. "My fratello…" he muttered. "I haven't been able to find him since I got here. It's not like he's a total weakling, but…"

"He would have been just as unprepared for this city as you were," I guessed. "You fear he may have gotten shot or otherwise injured by the Blues before he could explain."

Lovino-kun nodded, a distant look in his cinnamon-brown eyes. "He probably has the Potato Bastard with him, but… no matter how tough Ludwig is, if they were ambushed or attacked by too many at the same time…" he whispered. He glanced over, a sudden spark of unrecognizable emotion in his eyes. "N-not that I'm worried about that damn Potato Bastard or anything, I just know he's Fratello's only chance of safety right now!"

"… I see…" I murmured. The name he had mentioned… Ludwig-san… had stirred up vague memories of a tall blonde with icy blue eyes. "Do you have any idea where Feliciano-chan is?"

Lovino-kun abruptly turned to face me. "H-how did you know his name, damnit?" he demanded, a scared look in his eyes. I blinked, realizing that I should not have known his name.

"I- I don't know…" I whispered, panic welling up in my chest. What was going on? How had I pulled Lovino-kun's brother's name out of thin air? It was inexplicable, much like everything else that had happened over the past week.

He paused, giving me an odd look. "It's fine… Japan."

I took a deep breath, trying to calm down. "I'm sorry, Romano-kun, I have no idea how I knew your brother's name. This has been a very strange week for me..."

He went rigid for a moment, curl twitching again. I studied him cautiously out of the corner of my eye, alarmed.

"It's fine, Kiku. Don't worry about it, damnit, 'cause it's not that big of a deal," Lovino-kun insisted after a moment. He stood abruptly, turning back to the training course. "I've rested long enough, so I'm gonna run through the course on my own a few times."

I nodded numbly, staring off into the distance. It wouldn't be until much later that I would realize I had responded to the name "Japan" and called Lovino-kun "Romano-kun" by mistake.

Ah, finally got it done. Now the story can be read by my wonderful readers... ^.^

REMEMBER, FOLKS, REVIEWS LIGHT A FIRE UNDER MY REAR AND GET ME TO WRITE FASTER... bad ones slow me down though, so be careful... SO IF YOU WANT THIS (or my other stories) TO BE UPDATED SOONER OR FASTER, CLICK ON THE PRETTY LITTLE BUTTON DOWN THERE AND ASK ME (politely, 'cause I totally ignore threats donchano...) TO WRITE MORE!